ORLANDO: GUARDS: With Dwight Howard gone, this becomes JAMEER NELSON's team on the offensive end. Injuries slowed him a year ago, but he still does a nice job creating his own scoring chances . . . ARRON AFFLALO will provide some much-needed defense on the perimeter, a huge team weakness that will be exploited in the post-Howard era. He'll be a No. 2 or 3 option on the offensive end as well . . . J.J. REDICK has a chance for a bigger role in what should be a transitional year in Orlando. He's no more of a defensive liability than Nelson . . . CHRISTIAN EYENGA was a throw-in during the Dwight Howard trade and defends well enough to earn a roster spot . . . ISHMAEL SMITH will back up Nelson once he returns from a shoulder injury . . . E'TWAUN MOORE has played well enough in the preseason to spell Nelson too. FORWARDS: HEDO TURKOGLU still has some value as a point forward, though his minutes could shrink as Orlando rebuilds . . . GLEN DAVIS shined in Howard's absence last year. He's inefficient, but aggressive and willing to throw his weight around . . . Keep an eye on ANDREW NICHOLSON; the rookie is a crafty scorer who can shoot away from the basket . . . QUENTIN RICHARDSON will chug along as an injury-prone, three-point specialist . . . AL HARRINGTON is coming off a couple knee surgeries and may not have much left in the tank . . . MOE HARKLESS is athletic, versatile, and could get a long look in the second half of the year . . . GUSTAVO AYON is a capable big body who can play some center . . . JUSTIN HARPER will be buried on the bench . . . JOSH McROBERTS is not good. CENTERS: Davis figures to see a lot of minutes at center, but NIKOLA VUCEVIC is a much better defensive option. He's limited offensively, but could start grabbing more minutes in the middle as the year goes on . . . KYLE O'QUINN is a big body who can score around the basket. He has a rough transition ahead of him as an average athlete from a small school.

NEW YORK: GUARDS: RAYMOND FELTON will start at the point, which seems like a colossal mistake. He had his career year in New York under Mike D'Antoni, but the Knicks have gone away from the pick-and-roll system he thrived in . . . Don't be surprised if JASON KIDD is overtaking Felton in minutes played by midseason. He's limited athletically but still a heady passer . . . Resident chucker J.R. SMITH should see big minutes early before IMAN SHUMPERT steps in as the defense half of their shooting guard platoon as soon as his knee is recovered mid-season . . . RONNIE BREWER will be Smith's defensive complement while Shumpert is out . . . PABLO PRIGIONI is a game manager who provides insurance at the point. FORWARDS: This is once again CARMELO ANTHONY's team, as the Knicks will run their offense through him. It's going to be a lot of iso, and a lot of scoring opportunities for Melo . . . AMAR'E STOUDEMIRE doesn't fit nearly as well in this system as he did in former coach Mike D'Antoni's. He ended up forcing a lot of shots a year ago, and his durability is a major question mark . . . STEVE NOVAK will continue to come off the bench strictly as a three-point shooter. He's one of the best long-range bombers in the NBA, but he's too much of a defensive liability to play more than 20 minutes per night . . . Swingman JAMES WHITE will also get some minutes at the two or three spots with his 6-foot-7 frame. . . CHRIS COPELAND had some solid years overseas, but will be lucky to break into this rotation . . . KURT THOMAS is in player/coach mode. CENTERS: TYSON CHANDLER is indispensible on the defensive end as long as sieves Carmelo Anthony and Amar'e Stoudemire are also in the frontcourt . . . MARCUS CAMBY can't defendin space like Chandler can, but his ability to rebound and protect the rim will come in handy as the second unit is no better defensively than the starters . . . RASHEED WALLACE came out of retirement, but has a long way to go, especially with his lack of conditioning, before he contributes much at age 38.

Carmelo Anthony could be back for the New York Knicks, who have now lost a player who helped them to victory their last time out.

Anthony hopes to return Wednesday night at home when the Knicks will be without Kurt Thomas as they look to complete their first season sweep of the Orlando Magic in 15 years.

Anthony has missed three straight games after having fluid drained from the back of his right knee, but he practiced before sitting out Monday's 90-83 victory at Utah.

New York (39-26) avoided a season-high fifth straight loss with a makeshift lineup, and the 40-year-old Thomas was a catalyst with six points, three rebounds and a season-high three blocks in a season-best 27 minutes.

Thomas was playing with a bone spur in his right foot, and an exam on that foot revealed an acute stress reaction surrounding a chronic stress fracture. He will now miss up to four weeks.

The Knicks remain without All-Star center Tyson Chandler, who will be out a week with a bulging disc in his spine.

Chandler's absence Wednesday will be good news for Orlando (18-50). He is averaging 15.7 points on 87.0 percent shooting to go along with 8.3 rebounds to help the Knicks go 3-0 in the season series.

New York last swept Orlando when it won all four 1997-98 matchups.

Monday's win helped New York maintain its one-game Atlantic Division lead over Brooklyn. The Knicks lost the first four games of their trip by an average of 20.0 points.

"It's hard to win here, and to play a good team that's played well at home and be short-handed like we were, we stepped up," coach Mike Woodson said.

This contest begins a critical three-game stretch against losing clubs for New York, which has a home-and-home set with Toronto this weekend. A 3-0 mark would give them momentum when Chandler hopefully would return for next week's back-to-back with Boston and Memphis.

"We just gotta get 'Melo and Tyson back in gear and get them going again and keep this thing going because we've still got a lot of basketball left," Woodson said.

J.R. Smith is averaging 23.3 points in this stretch without Anthony, with 29 foul shots - his highest total over a three-game stretch. He hit 24 of those free throws.

"That's what he has to do, when the jump shot's not falling, he has to attack," teammate Kenyon Martin said.

Orlando was held to season-low 31.8 percent shooting in its fourth straight loss, 95-73 at Indiana on Tuesday. Arron Afflalo and rookie Maurice Harkless were the only Magic players in double digits with 10 points apiece while coach Jacque Vaughn was ejected.

"Early on, I thought we looked good shooting but they didn't go in," Vaughn said. "Whether it was a putback, we had a dunk attempt or an open 3, it just didn't go in."

New York is averaging 22.0 points off turnovers against Orlando this season. It is also averaging 8.7 turnovers compared to the Magic's 15.0.

Jameer Nelson is averaging a team-high 25.0 points and 8.5 assists in two games against New York while Afflalo is averaging 21.0 points in two as well.